


Midnight Relavations

by aiviloti



Category: The Kane Chronicles - Rick Riordan
Genre: Bad vibes, Brooklyn house people being solid friends, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Road trip in the planning, Truth or Dare
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-23
Updated: 2018-11-23
Packaged: 2019-08-27 23:45:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,330
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16712320
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aiviloti/pseuds/aiviloti
Summary: Late night truth or dare sessions at the Brooklyn House, in which secrets get revealed, or to be precise, what's wrong with Zia?





	Midnight Relavations

It was raining, and the pitter-patter of the raindrops were gentle against the window. There was a cold breeze from the rain, and it was just the right weather that easily lulled people to sleep. Tomorrow was a big day - Zia was going on a road trip with Carter, Sadie and the whole gang - which meant it was probably a good idea for Zia to get some sleep.

She couldn't, though.

She tossed and turned in bed for a long time, trying to empty her mind of all the unwanted thoughts that had been appearing more and more frequently for no apparent reason. Somehow, her thoughts were becoming hostile, and the voices in her head would whisper things to her that she didn't want to her. 

That night, it was no different. 

_ They only tolerate you because you wouldn't have anywhere to go. You’re a burden to those around you.  _ __  
__  
“Shut up,” Zia snapped. “Shut up and let me sleep.”    
  
She continued to toss and turn, attempting all the ways that was rumoured to help people fall asleep, (Spoiler alert: It was absolutely useless) but even for someone who wasn't a quitter, you had to admit counting sheep got boring past 3588.

_ It’s useless, _ she thought. _ Might as well get something done since sleep wasn't an option. _ She got up and slipped her orange slippers that were shaped like fish on. She opened her door. To her surprise, outside was Carter, whose hand was on the handle. 

“Were you looking for me?” Zia asked, realizing that was kind of a dumb question the second the words left her mouth. This was her room. Of course Carter was here to find her. “Uh sorry, that was dumb. Why were you looking for me?”

“None of us could really sleep, so we're planning on playing truth or dare. I came up to ask if you'd like to join us but I didn't dare to knock in case you were already asleep,” Carter explained. “So would you like to join us?”

The voices weren't as loud when her friends were around. Any company was better than being alone and get driven insane by the negativity that came from nowhere, wasn't it? “Yeah.” Zia gave Carter a wide grin. “Count me in.”

* * *

Zia didn't know truth or dare could be  _ this _ stressful. But then again, this was Brooklyn house, and she was with the Kanes.  _ Anything _ could be stressful. Zia shuddered at the thought of a flashback to the day before, where the day ended with the Khufu drenched in ketchup, Felix's penguins all reduced to eggs, and Brooklyn House’s newest and youngest recruit, the 7 year old Sophie having green skin from head to toe.

No one spoke a word as Sadie spun the bottle, all eyes fixated on it. Time slowed down as the bottle turned, and turned, until it slowly turned to Will. He eyed Sadie. “Was that on purpose?”   
  
Sadie shrugged. “I can’t will bottles to obey me, much as I’d like to. Now choose, truth or dare?”   
“Dare.”   
Sadie gave him a beady look, then slowly, she said, “eat five spoonfuls of a single condiment.”   
  
There was a small gasp from everyone, as Will winced. “That sounds kind of nasty.”   
  
But then, once you committed to truth or dare, there was no way out. The night proceeded, with a few more dares here and there, then some shocking truth. Truth or dare was almost becoming a regular activity for everyone, and it was undeniably both fun, yet comforting to everyone in the same way.   
  
“Truth!” little Felix said.   
  
“Okay, now choose a favourite penguin out of all 23 of yours, and you need to have a reason,” said Alyssa, smiling at the horrified Felix.   
  
“B… But you can’t make me  _ choose _ !” he wailed. “It’s not fair!”   
  
“Oh no, Felix. Everyone had an agreement,” Zia chirped. “Besides, we all already know you secretly love Sam more than all the other penguins, don’t you?” She gave him a cheeky grin, receiving a murmur of agreement from the other trainees.    
  
“Agh. Fine, you’re right. I just love Sam a  _ little _ bit more.” Felix pouted. “Now, let’s not talk about that anymore. It’s making me feel like a traitor.” He spun the bottle, and for the first time in the night, it landed on Zia.   
  
“Oh, uh, truth,” said Zia before anyone could ask her what she wanted.   
  
“Here’s one. What’s a thing that has been upsetting you lately?” Jaz asked, her expression telling Zia there was more to the question than a game of truth and dare.   


Zia was taken aback. “Upsetting… me?”   
  
To be honest, something was off recently, and Zia couldn’t tell what. All she knew was how everything started to fall out of place one day, and the more she tried to put them back, the more it crumbled. There wasn’t anything that was plainly not in order, it was just,  _ her _ . It was how she woke up one day, feeling like what she was doing wasn’t enough,  _ she _ wasn’t enough. Everyone was being really sweet to her at Brooklyn House, but it was her head that was feeding her these malicious thoughts, that did not have a source in the first place. That’s why she was so relieved when the three Kanes suggested going on a road trip, because maybe, just  _ maybe _ , it would be the key to making her feel better.   
  
“I...don’t really know? I mean everyone has moody days right? Maybe today isn’t my day.” she shrugged. How could she tell them what was upsetting her when she had no idea what was it anyway?    
  
Sadie gave Zia a concerned look. “You know that’s a little far from the truth, Zia,” she said, her eyes gentle. The atmosphere changed. Everyone who was playing around or laughing stopped, all eyes were on her, and she felt cornered. She shifted her position and awkwardly laughed a little, “Guys, please.”

“We all care about you Zia,” Carter said, the concern evident in his eyes.

“And if something’s bothering you, wouldn’t it be better if you talked it out? We are a one big family here, we won’t judge you,” Cleo added.

“I…” Zia looked at everyone expectantly waiting for her to speak out her problems. “It’s fine guys,  _ really _ .” She waved her hands in front of her and smiled at them. But upon seeing the hurt in their eyes, she reluctantly continued, choosing her words carefully. 

“It’s … It's just that...a moment I’m standing on the ground, the next moment the ground just crumbles down to pieces and suddenly I'm falling? I don’t really know, so…” she felt her throat getting constricted. “It’s this voices in my head that speak. And even when I think things are fine,  __ know things are fine, they don’t stop. And they just keep on coming in waves, and I’m finding it more and more difficult to get back up on my feet.” Her words came to a halt, as she sheepishly added, “C-can I stop now?”   
  
Before she knew it, her friends at Brooklyn house swept her into a group hug. “It’s going to be all alright, Zia,” little Shelby assured her, as Felix’s penguins gave a delighted honk out of the blue.   
  
“Thank you, Shelby.” Zia ruffled her hair. “I certainly hope so.” She gave the penguin waddling aside a pat, and added, “thank you too, uh…”   
  
“Her name is Winnie!” Felix supplied, earning a smile from Zia. “Thank you too, Winnie.”

“We’re all be going the trip tomorrow. All you have to do, is make sure you’re having fun, is that clear?” Walt said in a stern manner. “And all of us here-” he looked around and gestured at everyone, “-are going to make sure you have a lot of fun too.”   
  
Zia beamed at all her friends with tears shining in her eyes. “I’ll be sure to do that.”    
  
For once in a long time, the voices were silent.  
  


**Author's Note:**

> This is a zine piece for the lovely [PJO Zine](pjozine.tumblr.com) that will be presented like a big bang on the blog, so be sure to check it out for everyone's lovely works!
> 
> Also, if you like fairy tales, and are interested in seeing how it can turn out with a twist of its own, be sure to head [here](https://inkedfairytales.tumblr.com/post/180039238313/our-indiegogo-campaign-is-live-thank-you-all-for) to see the preorder post, or [here](https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/inked-fairytales-zine--2?utm_source=affiliate&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=sasdeep&utm_content=link&sscid=b1k2_otnld#/) to check out the store! All art pieces were done by inking, and there's a particular black, white and gold aesthetic that truly makes me nostalgic for all the brilliant fairytale books that made up most of my childhood! 
> 
> As always, I hope you enjoyed!


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